Can you really go Supermarket Free?

Main image by Russell Street. I have adapted this image. https://flic.kr/p/841x7o

For a while now we have been toying with the idea of going supermarket free, which would entail shopping anywhere but supermarkets and trying to buy everything locally.

Why would anyone want to go Supermarket Free?

It all sounds very lovely and idyllic but how do you actually go from getting all of your shopping items in one place to having to source them at lots of different places. With this fast past modern life and everyone being so short of time is it even possible and what are the actually benefits of going supermarket free?

Positive

You are supporting local farmers and business rather than throwing money into big corporates.

All of your food will be from local places so it has travelled less which equals less impact on the environment.

The food should be fresher.

You'll create less waste. Supermarkets are increasingly using more and more unnecessary packaging where as local produces tend to use a lot less.

Not So Positive

Sourcing your items from different places is going to take up more time than shopping all in one place.

A lot of local suppliers charge more for their products than the big supermarkets so it could end up costing more.

You may not be able to find all of the items that you usually buy from local sources.

@goriami "Though I have to admit..sometimes I save money by not buying at supermarket as no impulse buys and also markets are cheaper.."

@stressymummy "I would wonder if the time and money spent shopping around would outweigh the savings. Supermarkets do such good value online"

@WestyWrites "it's worth checking out local schemes too - I get my veg, fruit, eggs & milk all delivered weekly by local business"

I have been doing a lot of research into it and the general consensus seems to be to start small. For example first find somewhere to source just you fruit and veg, then start looking at where you can get your meat from, then perhaps find somewhere to buy all of your cupboard staple items.

So with this in mind my first step towards my Supermarket Free Challenge is to do some research into having a fruit and veg box delivered (well that and convincing the other half that going supermarket free is actually a good thing but that's another blog post in itself).

There seems to be quite a few companies out there that have started delivering veg boxes so I should be able to find one fairly easily.

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12 thoughts on “Can you really go Supermarket Free?”

That is a huge challenge. I don't think I could do. I would love to support local businesses more but running around for each individual thing with two under two and worrying about my son's allergies I am not sure if I could handle all that but I will follow you in your challenge and am very intrigued to see what you come up with darling. Thanks for linking up to Share With Me. #sharewithme

I've gone through months of no supermarket. I use a veg box system that's delivered. Also delivers other foods and sundries. They do supply tin foil and toilet rolls which used to be the things that would send me back to the supermarket. I could go totally supermarket free, if I was more organized.

In theory it would be great but for me, in practice, impossible. I do buy our fruit and veg from a local supplier and meat from the market but the other bits like tins, dairy, storecupboard items I really couldn't do without the supermarket, or afford elsewhere x